REVIEW: La Femme - Le Podium: La Femme #1 EP

La Femme - Le Podium #1 - La Femme
MMM1/2

Swathed in that eerie tone of ‘60s garage psych, Le Podium #1: La Femme plays more towards the past than the future – and, here, that’s nothing but a good thing. La Femme takes the entrancing sounds of this past and infuses them with the experimental urges of post-punk to create something that is at once energizing and infectious. This four song collection is dark and mysterious, maintaining a certain noir-style sex appeal thanks to its the echoey reverb and chilling synth and organ riffs.

At heart, La Femme is a surf rock band, but what gives their sound a magnetism is the addition of French new wave’s pop inflection and sexual underpinnings as well as the lo-fi, hypnotic flair of psych. Songs like “Sur La Planche” and “Telegraphe” demonstrate the band’s directness and immediacy while the EP’s latter tracks “La Femme Ressort” and “Francoise” showcase the band’s more experimental, cryptic side. Of course, they’re singing in French, so for all I know they’re singing about the most pleasant and wondrous of things. Whatever the case may be, Le Podium #1: La Femme proves to be a nice introductory statement, leaving an eventual desire for more.

BUY: Le Podium #1: La Femme is out now on Third Side Records. Pick it up on Amazon MP3, iTunes, or direct from the label here. The EP is the first in Le Podium, a 10" / Digital EP series from Third Side Records.

LISTEN: La Femme - "Sur La Planche"

MP3: La Femme - "Sur La Planche"

There are certain points in the night when everything is still and quiet, but everything inside of you is not. When you're all alone in the dead of night, it's hard not to find yourself tearing through all sorts of thoughts and memories. It's times like these when sleep is constantly escaping, leaving you to wrestle with a certain anxiousness that makes it hard to meet sleep. In the night, sometimes all you can do is race with your thoughts and enjoy the ride.

La Femme is rather mysterious -- ok, mainly because an initial search on Google yields nothing about the band. "Sur La Planche" only adds to the mystery, working some of that reverb-drenched '60s psych garage rock magic. It's more upbeat and straightforward than trippy, running on a frantic drum beat and bass riff that are almost manic in their pace. Imagine lo-fi surf swirling around in the hypnotic waves of psych and you've found the heart of the song.